2100 Huntington Drive — Manufacturing Facility Sale Through COVID Disruption
A countertop manufacturer lost its major retail contract and was left with a large industrial facility it no longer needed, significant debt against it, and a string of private deals that never closed. We took the property to a regional buyer pool, lost the top bidder to the pandemic, then re-read the numbers to find the price that actually solved the problem.
The Challenge
2100 Huntington Drive is a large-scale manufacturing facility near Interstate 80, one of Northern California's primary logistics corridors. The owner had produced countertop products there, at one point supplying major retailers including Home Depot. When that contract ended, the business no longer needed the facility.
The owner tried to sell independently and reached several deals over time, but each collapsed — buyers either could not meet pricing or lacked the capacity to close. The property also carried significant debt relative to the owner's remaining equity, putting pressure on him to resolve the loan. The asset needed exposure well beyond the local buyer network.
The Action
Referred to the owner, we proposed broad market exposure with targeted outreach to industrial investors and manufacturing users across multiple regional markets, positioning the property as a large industrial acquisition inside the Northern California distribution corridor.
The campaign led with:
- Proximity to Interstate 80, connecting the Bay Area and Sacramento
- Large-scale manufacturing and industrial infrastructure
- Expansion space for logistics, manufacturing or distribution users
Once listed and marketed broadly, the property quickly generated multiple competitive offers — several above the pricing the owner had been pursuing privately. Then COVID-19 halted industrial acquisitions across the market, and the highest-priced buyer withdrew.
Rather than abandon the process, we advised the owner to stay patient and keep marketing while we analyzed the loan balance, holding costs and the operating losses that had followed the Home Depot contract ending. That analysis showed the owner did not need a peak-market price to resolve the financial pressure — which let us reposition negotiations toward a solution rather than a number.
The Result
We identified a buyer who saw the property as an attractive opportunity relative to market pricing, and structured a transaction that solved the seller's financial challenge: the buyer believed they were acquiring below replacement cost, and the seller achieved a price that cleared the debt and holding costs.
Key outcomes:
- Sale of a large manufacturing facility in Fairfield
- Resolution of the loan obligations tied to the property
- A buyer acquisition at a price perceived as below market replacement cost
- The seller's exit from an unsustainable financial position
Most importantly, the owner was able to retire and preserve the assets that were not tied to the property. It is a case for pricing analysis and broad exposure over holding out for a peak — even through a market shock.
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